1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to dental compositions that include anti-stokes up converters. More particularly, the present invention relates to combining anti-stokes up converters with sealants, varnishes, restoratives, adhesives, bonding agents, cements, composites, veneers, and crowns for use in dental diagnostic applications.
2. The Relevant Technology
Teeth are important anatomical features that can be seen during normal daily activities. When people smile or converse with each other, their teeth are usually exposed and observable. While the colors, shapes, and arrangement of a person's teeth may not have been important in the past, aesthetically pleasing teeth are becoming more desirable and almost mandatory in developed societies. In part, advances in dentistry and the availability of dental cosmetics has provided people with the ability to have their imperfect teeth reshaped, colored, and/or restored to near perfection.
Dental professionals have used a variety of dental compositions to fix teeth defects such as cavities or broken teeth. Originally, fillings, crowns, and other dental restorative compositions had colors that contrasted or did not blend with a patient's tooth or surrounding teeth. Recently, patients have begun to demand dental compositions that blend with the color of their teeth to produce a more natural visual effect. This demand may have partially been a result of the stigmatism associated with discolored teeth, and the social benefits of having an aesthetically pleasing smile.
In response, various dental compositions have been produced that blend with the color of a patient's teeth. These dental compositions can vary in color so that they can be matched to different colors and shades of teeth. Also, some compositions have been designed to be applied to the teeth in order to provide or enhance a natural white smile. These teeth-blending compositions are aesthetically pleasing because they can blend with existing teeth or make the teeth appear more perfect.
While patients have had favorable responses to teeth-blending dental compositions, it has been difficult for some dental professionals to work with these compositions. A negative consequence arising from the teeth-blending compositions has resulted in dental professionals not being able to adequately distinguish the dental composition from the underlying tooth. As such, an attempt to remove or modify the dental composition may result in damaging the tooth because portions of the tooth may accidentally be removed. While dental compositions that blend with teeth can provide short-term aesthetic benefits, the long-term consequences can include damaging the teeth when the composition has to be removed, repaired, or replaced.
Therefore, what is needed is an improved dental composition that can be formulated to visually blend with the tooth and surrounding teeth, and which can temporarily change colors in response to a specific stimulus.